2018 Conference

At our annual conference, Propelling Smarter, Bolder Tourism, we explored how research is and can be effectively employed to advance Canada’s shared social, economic, environmental, and cultural goals. It is not ‘more’ tourism that Canada needs, it’s ‘better’, more energetic, astute, intelligent tourism. We seek style with substance, diversity with inclusion, and evolution with sustainability. Tourism researchers and their clients are embracing data and know-how to fearlessly chart new directions for established and emerging destinations, and supply impactful, brilliant experiences for our diverse markets. The 2018 conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia provided a platform for learning about new approaches, lessons learned and the challenges ahead, as we navigate post-truth, virtually-infused, climate change impacted, emerging environments.

Thank you for joining us on the East Coast – in Halifax, Nova Scotia – to discuss and share smarter, bolder travel and tourism research.

Our 2019 TTRA Canada Chapter Conference will be held from September 18 to 20, 2019 in Saskatoon Saskatchewan.

Smart Tourism: Hype or Real Opportunity?

Destinations around the world are eager to embrace smart tourism to gain competitive advantages but initiatives remain largely fragmented despite political pressures and funding opportunities. Only a few destinations have successfully adopted smart tourism as a development approach and management mindset. Looking at these best practice examples, this talk will explore critical dimensions of smart tourism development and typical roadblocks along the way to greater efficiency, security, sustainability, and quality experiences.

Dr. Ulrike Gretzel, Senior Fellow, Center of Public Relations, Annenberg School of Communication, University of Southern California & Director of Research, Netnografica

Cannabis Tourism: Places, Spaces, and Opportunities

Dr. Adam Keul is an Associate Professor of Tourism Management and Policy at Plymouth State University in Plymouth New Hampshire, USA where his colleague Dr. Brian Eisenhauer is a Professor of Sociology and Director of the Office of Environmental Sustainability. Keul is trained as a tourism geographer and has written on topics such as wetland tourism development and the politics of coastal access. Eisenhauer is trained as an environmental sociologist, and his research focuses on environmental communication and activism, collaboration, and natural resource management.

Their work on cannabis tourism emerged in response to the legalization of recreational cannabis sales throughout several US states beginning in 2014. As a novel market in cannabis tourism has begun to blossom, their research seeks to document and discern the practical and legal/political implications of welcoming visitors to these new legalized worlds of cannabis consumption. Their initial research, published by Annals of Leisure Research in 2018, delves into cannabis tourism in Colorado- the first place in the world to create a legal market for adult cannabis consumption. Working with cannabis tourism operators, dispensary owners, and tourists, they examined the differentiation of these new tourism experience products, factors affecting their success, and the outlook for future cannabis tourism.

Their keynote address will present this information alongside their ongoing research in Oregon, and the New England states of Maine, Massachusetts, and Vermont. Given the forthcoming federal legalization of cannabis in Canada, they will lay out the promises and pitfalls of embracing cannabis tourism throughout the provinces. While each location’s story will be governed by their locally unique legal and tourism landscapes, these evolving processes can be expected to have common characteristics. The lessons learned from this niche’s short history will inform the growth and development of new places for cannabis tourism as recreational legalization proceeds.

Dr. Adam Keul, Associate Professor of Tourism Management and Policy, Plymouth State University

Dr. Brian Eisenhauer, Professor of Sociology and Director of the Office of Environmental Sustainability, Plymouth State University

Understanding & Leveraging the LGBTQ Tourism Market

LGBTQ travel is one of the most lucrative, yet challenging, niche travel markets. But when you understand this market, the opportunities are limitless. In this session, participants will learn all of the basics of LGBTQ travel, from both a Canadian and an international perspective. The conversation will address:

Who are LGBTQ travellers generally and what motivates them in their travel decisions

The latest data about LGBTQ travel

Destination experiences and marketing strategies

Travel industry best practices

What Canada’s travel community is doing to market and welcome LGBTQ travellers